ASSISTANT boss Jon Whitney has challenged Walsall’s players to channel all their energies into winning the vital ‘‘mini-league’’ at the foot of League One.

ASSISTANT boss Jon Whitney has challenged Walsall’s players to channel all their energies into winning the vital ‘‘mini-league’’ at the foot of League One.

The Saddlers face Hartlepool at home tomorrow as one of seven clubs from which, barring an amazing implosion from above, four will go down in May.

Those seven, separated by six points, all have their fate in their own hands – and Whitney knows Walsall must take responsibility and simply outperform their six rivals from now on in.

“We know there is still a huge challenge ahead,” he said.

“We have told the players to look at it as a mini-league of the seven going up to Notts County. We need to shut everything else out of our minds and just finish in the top three of that mini-league.

“We have got what it takes. We have the quality and the form.

"On the last two months we would do it. But we have no divine right to do it. We have to give everything, work that bit harder and be that bit more enthusiastic than everyone else.

“Hartlepool is a huge game but we have nine huge games left and have been playing huge games for weeks and the players have responded brilliantly.

“If you look at the last couple of weeks, okay we haven’t played as well as we can, but we drew at Swindon and Yeovil in games the opponents needed to win more than us.

"We didn’t play particularly well but kept fighting for our lives and didn’t lose and who knows how important those points could prove?

“It was disappointing at Yeovil last Saturday because we dropped below the standards we have set and if Yeovil had their shooting boots on we would have been dead and buried. We stuck in there and got away with it but know we can’t afford to play like that again.”

The next two matches will hugely shape Walsall’s relegation battle.

"After tomorrow, they visit Milton Keynes next Friday then have a two-week break.

“We have nine games left and most are Saturday to Saturday which will be good because it will give us time to properly prepare the players,”

Whitney said. “The two weeks after MK Dons will be useful so we’ll put everything into the next two games to send us into that break on the front foot.”